(O.T.) Can anyone give me some good recipes?

Whistle
1

Hey everyone,

I am moving to a new aparment tomorrow, and I am stressed. We hardly have any furniture…and no groceries – as of now. Can any of you give me some good food ideas, or good recipes before I go grocery shopping? It wouild help us to save a lot…since we are five poor college students. I am sure you all have really good food ideas. Wish me luck! Thanks for everything. If you have any other good tips and advice for saving and things…it would be great if you could share them with me. ~Mimi

MCM Transatlantic Whistle Detective Agency–No Case Too Small
Branches in London and Salt Lake City

[ This Message was edited by: mimi on 2002-04-04 00:32 ]

2

Dear Mimi,

Try the book “The Complete Tightwad Gazette” by Amy Dacyczyn. ISBN # 0-375-75225-0.

It has recipes and other fine ways in which to live life on a budget. My wife has been reading it (and I sneak a peak, too) and has come up with a number of cost saving ideas.

Erik

3

If you have a crock pot, you can make a lot of inexpensive dishes, like stews and the like.

My typical crock pot stew:
1/2 lb “soup bones” (for add’l flavor..they’re about a buck and can be dropped for cost savings)
5 avg size carrots, cut into ‘coins’
3-4 russet potatoes, cubed (1")
1-2lb stew meat, cubed
1 cup water (dissolve a boullion cube for flavor)
1 clove of minced garlic
(you can get the pre-minced garlic if you’d like, but I’d suggest against garlic powder)
salt and pepper to taste (about 1tsp or so)
3 stalks celery, chopped
1 onion, chopped

put in crock pot in listed order.
Cook on low for 10-12 hours. This usually makes about 10 individual servings for me and my wife, so it’s only a couple bucks per meal. Of course, I usually add quite a bit to this dish by visitng the spice rack (I have a ton of spices), which isn’t absolutely necessary. But a bay leaf, some basil, and some thyme can add some more depth to this dish. If necessary, you can thicken it by dissolving a couple tbs flour in cold water, adding it to the stew when it’s done, and cooking on high for another 20-30 mins.

An easier crock pot dish:
5-6 boneless skinless chicken breasts
1 can condensed cream of chicken & mushroom soup
(if you don’t like mushroom, use cream of chicken)
2 cans condensed cheddar soup
salt and pepper to taste. These soups are already salted to a degree so it won’t take much.

Add to crock pot in order listed. DO NOT ADD WATER, as crock pots always end up with more liquid than you start with. The thick condensed soup WILL thin out. Cook about 8 hours on low. For additional flavor, you can sprinkle onion and garlic powder on the chicken breasts before adding soup.
I usually have this over rice (real rice is cheapest…instant rice is easiest), which sucks up the chicken and soup nicely. With a light salad, and about 1c of rice per person, one chicken breast with sauce makes about a complete serving.

Both of these dishes freeze well so you can save leftovers.

Anyway, hope that helps a little. Crock pots rule, especially for making biggish dinners cheap..if you don’t have one, I suggest getting a cheap one ASAP. :wink:

Greg

[ This Message was edited by: Wandering_Whistler on 2002-04-04 02:09 ]

4

Good point, Greg!

For under $20 you can get a crockpot and a crockpot cookbook. I suggest “Crockery Cookery” by Mable Hoffman and it’s hard to go wrong with a Rival Crockpot.

My wife makes crockpot spaghetti sauce (that makes a huge amount) and then we freeze the left overs for several other meals. For dessert entertainment I play a whistle (my vain attempt to bring this several OT thread around :slight_smile: ).

Good stuff!

Erik

5

This is one of my favorite recipes:

Dublin Coddle

1 lb. bacon slices
2 lb. pork sausage links
2 lg onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 lg potatoes, thickly sliced
2 carrots, thickly sliced
1 bouquet garni
bacon grease
black pepper
hard cider
chopped parsley for garnish

Lightly fry bacon until crisp. Break into bite sized pieces and place in large cooking pot. Brown sausage in the bacon grease.
Remove, cut into bite sized pieces and add to pot. Soften sliced onions and minced garlic cloves in the bacon grease, then add to pot with potatoes and carrots. Bury the bouquet garni in the middle of the mixture. Sprinkle with pepper. Cover with hard cider. Simmer covered 1 1/2 hours over medium-low heat, DO NOT BOIL! Garnish with chopped parsley.

6

On 2002-04-04 07:13, raindog1970 wrote:
This is one of my favorite recipes:

Dublin Coddle

1 lb. bacon slices
2 lb. pork sausage links
2 lg onions, sliced
2 cloves garlic, minced
4 lg potatoes, thickly sliced
2 carrots, thickly sliced
1 bouquet garni
bacon grease
black pepper
hard cider
chopped parsley for garnish

Lightly fry bacon until crisp. Break into bite sized pieces and place in large cooking pot. Brown sausage in the bacon grease.
Remove, cut into bite sized pieces and add to pot. Soften sliced onions and minced garlic cloves in the bacon grease, then add to pot with potatoes and carrots. Bury the bouquet garni in the middle of the mixture. Sprinkle with pepper. Cover with hard cider. Simmer covered 1 1/2 hours over medium-low heat, DO NOT BOIL! Garnish with chopped parsley.

Any recipe that starts out with

1 lb. bacon slices
2 lb. pork sausage links

can’t possibly go wrong

7

I just tried this last night for the first time. I’d had it a couple of weeks ago at an Italian restaurant and duplicated it really well first try:

1/2 lb penne or similar pasta
1 small can tomato paste
~15 black olives
~15 capers
a couple tbsp water
hot paprika or ground red pepper to taste

Put a large pan of water over high heat for the pasta. In a small sauce pan, put the tomato paste with enough water (maybe 1/4 cup) that it’s not too too pasty. Slice the olives and add them and the capers to this, then add paprika or pepper so that there’s just a hint of zing. When the pasta’s done, drain and rinse, then add the paste. Serve with a good bread.

Another easy crockpot recipe is chili:

2 cans beans (black, pinto, and/or kidney)
2 cans diced tomatoes
1-2 onions
1 bell pepper
1-2 mild chilis (anaheim, cubanel, tomato)
hot chilis to taste (jalapeno, serrano, habanero)
~2 Tbsp chili powder (to taste)
1 tsp cumin (to taste)

You may also want to add:
1 lb stew meat or diced pot roast or steak
1-2 bouillon cubes
some water

Coarsely chop all veggies, remove seeds and ribs from fresh peppers, put it all in a pot, make sure there’s enough liquid, and let it stew for a few hours. Taste it half an hour or so before serving and adjust spices.

Enjoy, Charlie

8

My favourite cookbook series is “Company’s Coming” There are a huge number of the books in different topics and they use everyday ingredients.

Last night we had

Easy Taco Dinner

1 lb ground beef scramble fried with some onions and green peppers.
2 1/2 cups water
1 pkg taco seasoning
Bring to a boil and add the macaroni from a box of Kraft Dinner. When that is cooked add the cheese packet and one chopped tomato. Serve immediatley with shredded lettuce, green onion and sourcream.

Very tasty! (just a note, I find it too strong using the whole package of taco seasoning so I just use half)

Have fun!
Deb

9

Hmmmm… this could lead to some very interesting recipies.

Now there’s a thought…

WHISTLIN’ RECIPIES FROM AROUND THE WORLD
by the c&f group.

I am quite partial to a good bowl of soup.

For leftover turkey or you can use chicken breast.

TURKEY NOODLE SOUP

2T oil
1/2 C chopped bell pepper
1 C chopped red onion
10 C chicken or turkey broth
1 C dry white wine
2 cans drained diced tomatoes
1/2 C dried parsley
3 C 1/2" cubed cooked turkey (or chicken)
1 C small egg noodles
3 drops tobasco sauce
1/4 tsp. salt

In soup pot, saute with oil onion and green pepper. Then, add broth, bring to boil. Add tomatoes, parsley, and turkey. Bring to boil. Reduce heat to low and add salt, tobasco, and noodles. Cover and simmer for 1 hour.

Laura

10

Dare I suggest the ever popular (and dirt cheap) Tuna Noodle Casserole!

2 cans tuna, drained and 'fluffed
1 can Campbells cream of mushroom, or celery
or broccoli (don’t water it down…it needs to be condensed)
1 lb box of flat egg noodles, cooked
potato chips or chinese chow mein noodles

mix the tuna and cream of X soup and about half the noodles add pepper.
in a buttered casserole dish layer the plain noodles, the mixed with tuna stuff noodles, and on top put the chips…

for added nutrition you can mix a box of frozen peas or carrots or whatever in the tuna mix

bake at about 350 for about 45 min.

11

I second the casserole motion, tyghress. If you’re not into tuna (which I love), you can make broccoli, chicken, or whatever casserole. You can throw in just about any veggie, bread crumbs, seasonings, to suit your taste. And it’s good warmed over!

12

Here’s dinner and dessert . . . vegetarian style. It’s cheaper to cook up veggies, pasta and legumes and you’ll have a chance to experiment with seasoning. It’s better for your health, too.
The cassarole is great as leftovers and the applesause cake is a snap to make. Enjoy!



Chickpea Cassoulet with Tomatoes and Chard

• 1 onion diced
• 3 cloves garlic, minced
• 1 red pepper
• 2 tsp. chopped fresh thyme(1/2 tsp dried)
• 1/2 tsp paprika
• 15-oz can chickpeas
• 2 cups chopped tomatoes
• freshly ground pepper
• 1 bunch chard, leaves only
• 12 oz pasta
• 1/2 cup grated cheese

Preheat oven to 350 F. Cook pasta al dente, drain. Saute onion garlic, diced red pepper and herbs. Cook over medium high heat, stirring frequently until onions are soft about 8 min.
Add chickpeas, 1/2 cup of their liquid and tomatoes. Season with pepper. Lower heat and simmer 15 min.
If pan becomes dry, add a little water to keep it moist. Steam chard until bright green and tender. Remove, chop coarsely, season with pepper and if desired salt. Put pasta in casserole, add chickpea-tomato mixture, chard and cheese. Toss until well mixed.
Cover with foil and bake until warmed through, about 20 min. Serve with additional grated cheese if desired. Makes 4 to 6 servings (I find it to be more). Here in Fl. it’s hard to find chard, so I usually use fresh or frozen spinach. Kale would work just as well. You can also prepare this ahead of time, then pop into oven and heat for 20 min.





THE NEW FARM’S APPLESAUCE CAKE

1/2 cup oil
1 cup sugar
2 cups unbleached flour
2 cups unsweetened applesauce
1 1/2 tsp. baking soda
1 tsp. cinnamon
1/2 tsp. nutmeg
1/2 tsp. vanilla

Mix oil and sugar well, add applesauce, and mix in the dry ingredients. Beat until smooth. Pour in an oiled and floured 9" x 13" pan and bake at 350 for 30-35 minutes, or into an oiled loaf pan and bake for 45-50 minutes until done. This cake is even better the next day.

13

Don’t forget whole-grain](http://chiffboard.mati.ca/viewtopic.php?topic=2000&forum=1%22%3Ewhole-grain) porridge. Also works well in a crockpot, it is claimed.

14

Mimi! Plan on eating a lot of rice. 1 cup of rice in 2 cups of water makes 3 cups of RICE! It’s cheap, like about 14 bucks for a 20 pound bag, and let’s you buy things like fresh veggies and occasionally meat. Grow your own sprouts. Anything you can stir fry in a wok is great! I’ve used a wok for pretty near anything. P.S. I second the crock pot thing, just make sure you get one where the crock part is removable! Stay away from generic macaroni and cheese! If I could have only one cooking pot, it would be my wok! Leftovers, like rice, are great the second time around when you stir fry 'em! Fresh garlic and ginger and Soy Sauce do the seasoning job really well!

Let it shine! Anna “Dances with Weasels” Martinez

[ This Message was edited by: Anna Martinez on 2002-04-04 20:07 ]

15

It’s been a long time since my college days, but if you want to eat well and save money, plan on a soup every dinner. It can either be a first course or the main meal depending on what you make it out of. You will find that you want a much smaller portion of what ever else you prepare.

16

Wow! I am really surprised at the results. I didn’t think anyone would bother with it. Thank you all so much. I appreciate this a lot. I am definately going to use these recipes and look for a crock pot, and do the other things suggested. I am so naive when it comes to cooking every meal…every day…7 days a week. These suggestions are so helpful to me. Anyone else that has good recipes or ideas…please feel free to let me know. Thanks so much. ~Mimi

17

I can’t believe no one has said ::drumroll please:: RAMEN! 10 packages for a buck… I lived on it in college. :stuck_out_tongue: Of course, it’s not terribly healthy for you, but hey… it’s food! (or so they say) :wink:

All the best,
Andrea ~*~

18

When I was a year out of college a friend and I got into the habit of cooking one full DINNER for each other (later it expanded to four women) once a week. The ‘rules’ of the dinner club were:

Dinner must include appetizer, main course with at least three dishes, and dessert, all of which are to be prepared by the hostess.

No dish may be repeated unless you have a bona fide craving.

It is understood that mistakes happen. That’s why there is take out Chinese and pizza deliver. (We NEVER had to resort to this, though my dinner with the ‘little black grodies’ came close)

We learned how to use recipe books, time the preparation so that you didn’t have peas for dessert, plan ahead so that all the cooking wasn’t done on the spot (you’ll be amazed at how much better some foods are reheated!)

In general, though, you want to be able to cook things easily and quickly. If you’re going to buy gadgets, my vote is for the Foreman Grill. Nice for meat, fish, veggies, hotdogs, hamburgers, and VERY easy clean up if you clean it while its HOT (very wet sponge, rinse it often).

If you’re primary concern is cost, do NOT buy the frozen foods, prepared or boxed mixes. (Frozen veggies are another matter, and perfectly sensible) If your concern is time, the mixes are a real boon! Try things like Near East cous cous and pilaf, and look at the recipes on the back. They work and they’re super quick.

Easy pasta salad: cook pasta of your choice, add in chopped veggies of choice, chopped protein of choice (anything from firm tofu to tuna to chicken or left over lunch meat) and toss with favorite salad dressing. This is actually better on the second day.

Get soft taco shells, spoon on and rub around a bit of tomato sauce, distribute on the top fake crab bits(preheat them first by putting ém on a plate and nuking 'em for 30 sec) (this actually tastes better than the real crab, so don’t splurge) sprinkle with shredded cheese of choice and nuke until the cheese bubbles. Or substitute cooked veggies for the fake crab.

geez, I’m on a roll here! Maybe I’m hungry. I’m going to get lunch. . .bye!

19

OK, this is easy and tastes so good people will think you are serving them classy restaurant fair. And, of course, it is vegetarian.

Bloomfield’s Sugo (Tomato Sauce)

3 tblsp olive oil
1 large onion
3 carrots
1 lg parsnip
celeriac (or use celery stalks, maybe 4)
dried oregano
garlic (min 1 clove, max 8. Actually, there is no max)
1 lg can of tomatoes (whole or diced)
1 sm can of tomato paste
1 generous pinch of sugar
salt & pepper to taste (about a teaspoon of salt)

This is easiest with a cuisinart (I do it by hand to relax). Parnisp looks like a white, large carrot and celeriac is the same thing as celery root (use about the same amout as parsnip). Both are optional if you can’t find them. Celery stalks will work and you can increase the amount of carrots.

Mince the onion, fry it in the hot oil in a largish pan. Clean and mince the carrots, parsnip, celeriac, garlic and add to onion. Let this cook, stirring often for about 10 mins. (best if it gets a bit brown. Add the orgeno (about 2-3 tbl spns). Add the canned tomatoes. Now put on the pasta water. The sauce will be done by the time the past is cooked.

Bring sauce to boil. Add tomatopaste, sugar (important), salt, pepper. Let simmer and reduce. Add water if needed (or add red wine, mmmh). If you have it, add a dash of soy sauce. You can’t overcook this sauce and it is great the next day.

This is a great recipy to make in large quantities. Good with parmesan or romano cheese.

20

How about baked chicken Mimi? It’s easy and will feed you for 1-3 days, depending on the number of folks eating. And it’ll make your apartment smell great while it’s cooking.

1 whole chicken
1 lemon (sliced)
4 - 6 cloves garlic
1 or 2 onions (chopped very coarsely)
spices – powdered thyme, sage & rosemary
salt

Wash the chicken thoroughly, and pat dry (inside and out). Rub the outside with powdered sage and thyme. Coat the cavity with salt (coarse ground is better), sage, thyme & rosemary. Peel 4 - 6 heads of garlic and crush them. Stuff the cavity with chopped onion, sliced lemon and garlic. Tie the chickens legs together with string and put in baking pan. If desired, you can lay 4 or 5 slices of butter on the breast. Bake for 15 minutes at 425, then turn oven down and bake for 1 - 1 1/4 hours at 350. Take out of oven and let it sit for 10 minutes. Carve and serve. If you like you can also add more very coarsely chopped onion around the chicken and drizzle a few drops of balsamic vinegar over them.

This dish is not only easy, but produces an impressive dinner! Enjoy!

StarrM